Library / English Dictionary

NAIL

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A thin pointed piece of metal that is hammered into materials as a fastener

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("nail" is a kind of...):

fastener; fastening; fixing; holdfast (restraint that attaches to something or holds something in place)

Meronyms (parts of "nail"):

shank; stem (cylinder forming a long narrow part of something)

nailhead (flattened boss on the end of nail opposite to the point)

head (a projection out from one end)

clinch (the flattened part of a nail or bolt or rivet)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "nail"):

brad (a small nail)

clout; clout nail (a short nail with a flat head; used to attach sheet metal to wood)

doornail (a nail with a large head; formerly used to decorate doors)

eightpenny nail (a nail 2.5 inches long)

fourpenny nail (a nail 1.5 inches long)

hobnail (a short nail with a thick head; used to protect the soles of boots)

sixpenny nail (a nail 2 inches long)

spike (a large stout nail)

staple (a short U-shaped wire nail for securing cables)

stub nail (a short thick nail)

tack (a short nail with a sharp point and a large head)

tenpenny nail (a nail 3 inches long)

Derivation:

nail (attach something somewhere by means of nails)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Horny plate covering and protecting part of the dorsal surface of the digits

Classified under:

Nouns denoting body parts

Hypernyms ("nail" is a kind of...):

horny structure; unguis (any rigid body structure composed primarily of keratin)

Meronyms (parts of "nail"):

matrix (the formative tissue at the base of a nail)

half-moon; lunula; lunule (the crescent-shaped area at the base of the human fingernail)

root (the embedded part of a bodily structure such as a tooth, nail, or hair)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "nail"):

fingernail (the nail at the end of a finger)

toenail (the nail at the end of a toe)

Holonyms ("nail" is a part of...):

integumentary system (the skin and its appendages)

dactyl; digit (a finger or toe in human beings or corresponding body part in other vertebrates)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A former unit of length for cloth equal to 1/16 of a yard

Classified under:

Nouns denoting quantities and units of measure

Hypernyms ("nail" is a kind of...):

linear measure; linear unit (a unit of measurement of length)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Complete a pass

Synonyms:

complete; nail

Classified under:

Verbs of fighting, athletic activities

Hypernyms (to "nail" is one way to...):

play (participate in games or sport)

Domain category:

football; football game (any of various games played with a ball (round or oval) in which two teams try to kick or carry or propel the ball into each other's goal)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sense 2

Meaning:

Take into custody

Example:

the police nabbed the suspected criminals

Synonyms:

apprehend; arrest; collar; cop; nab; nail; pick up

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "nail" is one way to...):

clutch; prehend; seize (take hold of; grab)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s somebody

Sense 3

Meaning:

Attach something somewhere by means of nails

Example:

nail the board onto the wall

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "nail" is one way to...):

attach (cause to be attached)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something PP

Also:

nail down (define clearly)

Derivation:

nail (a thin pointed piece of metal that is hammered into materials as a fastener)

nailer (a worker who attaches something by nailing it)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Hit hard

Example:

He smashed a 3-run homer

Synonyms:

blast; boom; nail; smash

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "nail" is one way to...):

hit (deal a blow to, either with the hand or with an instrument)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody

Sense 5

Meaning:

Locate exactly

Example:

The chemists could not nail the identity of the chromosome

Synonyms:

nail; pinpoint

Classified under:

Verbs of buying, selling, owning

Hypernyms (to "nail" is one way to...):

locate; turn up (discover the location of; determine the place of; find by searching or examining)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody PP
Somebody ----s something PP

Sense 6

Meaning:

Succeed at easily

Example:

She nailed her astrophysics course

Synonyms:

ace; breeze through; nail; pass with flying colors; sail through; sweep through

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "nail" is one way to...):

make it; pass (go successfully through a test or a selection process)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Sense 7

Meaning:

Succeed in obtaining a position

Example:

He nailed down a spot at Harvard

Synonyms:

nail; nail down; peg

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "nail" is one way to...):

bring home the bacon; come through; deliver the goods; succeed; win (attain success or reach a desired goal)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Credits

 Context examples: 

Swelling and redness of the nail folds.

(Paronychial Inflammation, NCI Thesaurus)

Examples include thickening, thinning, deformity, and separation from the nail bed.

(Nail Changes, NCI Thesaurus)

A disorder characterized by an infectious process involving the soft tissues around the nail.

(Paronychia, NCI Thesaurus/CTCAE)

Loss of all or a portion of a nail.

(Nail Loss, NCI Thesaurus)

A disorder characterized by an infectious process involving the nail.

(Nail Infection, NCI Thesaurus/CTCAE)

The health of your nails can be a clue to your overall health.

(Nail Diseases, NIH)

For skin and nail infections, you can apply medicine directly to the infected area.

(Fungal Infections, NIH: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)

The side of the nail extending over the finger or toe which can be trimmed.

(Free Edge of the Nail, NCI Thesaurus)

A disorder characterized by a change in the color of the nail plate.

(Nail Discoloration, NCI Thesaurus/CTCAE)

Excessive lateral nail growth into the nail fold.

(Ingrown Toenail, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)